The Houston Astros could have a larger lead in the American League West if they had more success away from Minute Maid Park. They’ll try and improve on a weak road record when they open a four-game set in Oakland against the last place Athletics.
ODDS ANALYSIS
The Astros used a 5-1 homestand, including a sweep of the Los Angeles Angels, to vault back into first place in the AL West. Now that they are back on the road, that lead could vanish. Houston lost for the 10th time in its last 11 road games, falling 4-3 to the Rangers on Tuesday. The Astros are a miserable 22-30 on the road, down 6.67 units and have six games coming up in the Bay Area. Houston swept the only series played in Oakland, winning three straight from the Athletics back in April when the Astros totaled 21 runs, giving them the upperhand on a team that has as much difficulty winning at home as the Astros do on the road. The Athletics split the first six games of their current homestand, which is a huge improvement over their 24-32 overall record at O.co Coliseum. Oakland is the least profitable team in the majors down 20.74 units overall and 17.38 units at home.
PITCHING MATCHUP
Scott Feldman (13-5, 2.35 ERA) struggled in Friday’s no-decision against Arizona, allowing three runs on seven hits over 5.1 innings. He didn’t issue a walk for the first time in his last 10 starts, so that was encouraging. Feldman has made three starts since coming off the disabled list following knee surgery and has yet to win a game. Overall the Astros have gone 5-8 in his 13 starts, eight of which have been quality. He’ll need to pitch better to stick in the rotation now that the Astros have an abundance of starters.
He’s had a rough go at O.co Coliseum with a 7.20 ERA in nine starts over 14 appearances there.
Aaron Brooks (1-0, 3.09 ERA) pitched his way into the rotation when he shut down the Indians on Saturday in his A’s debut. He allowed one run on five hits in 7.1 innings, leaving to a standing ovation at the Coliseum. In two relief appearances with Kansas City, Brooks yielded three runs in 4.1 innings before coming over in the Ben Zobrist deal.
QUOTE TO NOTE
“This has been a fun run so far to get to this point. You can downplay it only so much, but the resiliency in this team and the methodical continuation of how we approach our games every day is really fun to be a part of. Our guys, they’re loose, they’re having fun, they understand the moments and the moments aren’t too big for them.” – Astros manager A.J. Hinch.
LIVE BETTING or SITUATIONAL BETTING
The Houston Astros have employed an unorthodox three-man rotation at first base and it isn’t going away any time soon, according to manager A.J. Hinch. The trio of Chris Carter, Luis Valbuena and Marwin Gonzalez will man the bag depending on who has the hot bat. The position was supposed to be Carter’s when the season began and he started 74 of the first 80 games, but his struggles opened up the competition. Carter does have 17 home runs, but his .181 average is concerning and the promise he showed last season has yet to materialize, leading to the unusual platoon. The return of Jed Lowrie has forced Valbuena and his .206 average off third base. His 20 home runs, however, are too enticing to put on the bench. Gonzalez has been supplanted at shortstop by Alex Correa and owns a much higher average than the other two, but he doesn’t have the power numbers.
PROP TALK
Carlos Correa went hitless for just the second time in his last 19 games Tuesday at Texas but had connected for four home runs in as many games prior to that. He leads all AL shortstops with 13 home runs while playing in only 49 games. The kid has done nothing but hit since arriving in the major leagues owning an impressive .292/.343/.564 slash line. Correa hasn’t faced the Athletics this season as he was still toiling in the minors when the teams played all nine games of the season series before May 21.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
One solid outing against the soft-hitting Cleveland Indians isn’t enough to convince us that A’s starter Aaron Brooks is the real deal. He’ll be tested against the Astros but Brooks’ ability to limit free baserunners – he has yet to issue a walk this season – takes a major weapon away from Houston. The Astros have reached 325 times via a base on balls and lead the majors in home runs, which is why they are third in the AL in runs despite a .246 team average. The Astros are too good to continue losing on the road and they get to Brooks for the win.
Houston 6, Oakland 3
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